Cork n Bottle Selections, not what they used to be?

[Josh]

Cork n Bottle liquor stores in Covington, KY have long been known for their excellent single barrel selections. I got one of my first bottles of 4R Single Barrel from there and I remember it very fondly. More recently they have put out some stellar bottles of OWA.

I recently heard a rumor that they guy (I forget his name) who led the bourbon selection program at Cork n Bottle for many years had moved on and that their current selections are not up to their former standards. Anybody know if there is any truth to this?

Judging by my recent experience, the transition may have occured between the selections of ETL barrels #18 & #19. I tasted #18 at an SBer's house recently and it was great. My bottle from #19, which we tasted alongside #18, was ok, but nothing special. Pretty much the same as the standard issue. Anybody have a similar experience?

[jburlowski]

Josh,

Brian Hue is (or was) the man. He's one of the two brothers that ran the stores which have been in the family for a long time. Brian was the genl. mgr and go-to guy for spirits. Great guy and very knowledgable. He apparently left around six months ago or so. All I could get from the employees was "he's no longer here" and "it was a family decision".

Don't know if the barrel selection has waned (frankly haven't bought any recently), but the vibe at the store seems to have changed. Lots of new faces and not as friendly. Could be purely my reaction to missing Brian (who was my primary contact). Or maybe the stores were sold?

[BourbonJoe]

I haven't been there for at least a year John but the last time Fricky and I were there, a really friendly and knowledgeable guy, probably the guy you are talking about, took us back into a tasting room and gave us a taste of all their special bottles. I hate to think that guy is gone. He treated us very well.

Joe :usflag:

[WsmataU]

Think that has anything to do with the fact that my virus scan alerts every time I go to their website?

[OscarV]

Think that has anything to do with the fact that my virus scan alerts every time I go to their website?

[QUOTE][/QUOTE]

I read this and I had to try it and yes, AVG blocked a threat.

[The Boozer]

Josh,

Picked up a couple of 4R SB barrel #18 back in March. Thought they were a little richer with more burnt caramel and brown sugar flavors than the standard 4R SB. This still might have been picked by Brian Hue because they were all gone when I was there in June. Still have full bottle so we need to get together with the gang for some tasting.

[Josh]

Sounds like a great plan, my man! give me a call or a pm.